GE Healthcare this week launched its new Edison HealthLink, a new edge computing technology designed for the needs of healthcare providers.

WHY IT MATTERS
The new offering is designed to help clinicians more easily "collect, analyze and act upon critical data closer to its source," according to GE Healthcare. Ten applications are already available through the platform.

Edison HealthLink runs the Edison Health Services software stack – offering services including HIPAA-compliant data aggregation, advanced visualization, connectivity and AI and non-AI algorithm orchestration.

Using the technology – which can be deployed at the edge, on premise or in the cloud – developers can build and deploy new clinical applications and workflows, according to GE, which notes that the connection of medical devices to Edison HealthLink enables hospitals to update them continually as software advances, without the need for new equipment.

THE LARGER TREND
The company notes that cloud technology has its limitations in time-sensitive situations, given potential challenges with bandwidth and network and latency.

GE Healthcare offers the example of caring for a stroke patient, where every second counts for saving brain cells. Using advanced post-processing software at the edg, such as Edison HealthLink could help clinicians more quickly assess brain scans and act upon critical data without needing to send it to the cloud.

GE first launched the Edison platform – named for its co-founder – in 2018, touting its edge technology as a way to help hospitals and health systems gain more value from their existing technology. 

"Edison provides clinicians with an integrated digital platform, combining diverse data sets from across modalities, vendors, healthcare networks and life sciences settings," said GE Healthcare CEO Kieran Murphy at the time. "Applications built on Edison will include the latest data processing technologies to enable clinicians to make faster, more informed decisions to improve patient outcomes."

ON THE RECORD
"COVID-19 has accelerated industry-wide trends with implications for the future of care delivery. It's time to apply these trends and use them to modernize the current health system infrastructure," said Amit Phadnis, chief digital officer at GE Healthcare, in a statement. "As more care delivery becomes virtual and as more healthcare data moves to the cloud, technologies like Edison HealthLink provide a bridge, allowing devices to operate on premise, at the edge and in the cloud."

Twitter: @MikeMiliardHITN
Email the writer: mike.miliard@himssmedia.com
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